Training Program

Our training adheres to a strict bench-mark schedule that takes you from no experience to Certified Flight Instructor in 24 months.

Student Services

From day one to finding your dream job, we are here to provide a clear path to your goals. We guide you through the entire experience. Our Student Services Staff is comprised of financial aid professionals and veteran graduates.

Degree Programs

From the ground to the sky, you will be surrounded by highly experienced flight instructors and a faculty comprised of the most experienced personnel in the industry.

FAQs

Veterans helping Veterans

Our highly experienced Veteran staff are here to help you from the initial paperwork to the resume that lands you your first job.

July 14, 2017

What is High Density Altitude and why does it matter?

You may have heard about “flying in High DA” or “High Density Altitude”, but does that really mean anything to the aspiring helicopter pilot looking for the right training program? I can tell you that it didn’t mean anything to me when I first started looking into flight schools. Back then, I had seen it … Continued

February 14, 2017

One Student Pilot’s Advice on Applying for Flight Training in the USA

Private Pilot, Lechelle Dippenaar traveled across the world to take the next step in her flight training, coming to Guidance all the way from South Africa. Here, Lechelle shares with us the some of her story and what it was like enrolling for flight school in the U.S. as a foreign citizen. What was your … Continued

January 2, 2017

Santa Flies in on a Helicopter: 2017 Edition

Once again, a Guidance Aviation pilot was happy to oblige when Santa Claus needed a ride. This year, Chief Pilot Instructor Zach Hardwick heeded the call to escort Santa over to Yavapai Exceptional Industries (YEI!). Check out a 360°, panoramic video of the event. If you’re on mobile, try moving your device to see the … Continued

December 12, 2016

Keeping the Prestige in Pilot

Guidance Aviation Pilot, Andrew Craw and his family relocated over 1700 miles for Andrew to attend the right flight school and to pursue his dream of becoming a Commercial Pilot. His dream is now becoming a reality. As I sit with my wife and three year old son at the local airport restaurant, I can’t … Continued

James Lee – Student Blog 06.29.2015

June 30, 2015

James Lee – Student Blog 06.29.2015

June 30, 2015

Rocker – Paratrooper – Helicopter Pilot

by James Lee, CFI-I

The Aviation bug caught me early in life, I was a part time Army brat and spent my summers along with my older brother on the drop zones of Ft. Benning Georgia watching my Father jump out of C-130’s with the 75th Ranger Regiment. I loved the aircraft I was able to see, especially the helicopters flying just above the tree line. “Top Gun” was my favorite movie and I wanted to be a fighter pilot when I grew up. The dream of flying faded as I grew older, after high school I followed my love of music and began working in the music industry in New York City and eventually Los Angeles. I was living my dream of playing in a band and working with rock stars. Like so many others, my life changed after 9/11 and my priorities began to change as well.

James Lee, CFI-I, Helicopters, U.S. Army Veteran.

Military Service Brings Confidence

The dream that I was living was no longer what I wanted from life. In 2005 I joined the family business and enlisted in the U.S. Army and becoming a paratrooper in the 82d Airborne Division. The Army was a shock to my system but it was a good fit. I loved the structure and loved what I was doing. I was jumping out of those same airplanes and flying in the helicopters I watched as a kid. As I began to move through the ranks and took on more responsibility, I could feel my confidence growing in what I did and who I was.

Kiowas Bring Back the Aviation Bug

In 2010 I was on my second deployment to Afghanistan in a beautiful area just outside Kandahar known as the Arghandab River Valley. It was a lush valley filled with pomegranate orchards, grapevines and improvised explosive devices. Our infantry company was being supported by a squadron of OH-58D Kiowa helicopters and the aviation bug was starting to bite me again. Maybe it was the fact that they were up there having fun while I was on the ground, dirty and tired but I decided in that valley that I wanted to fly helicopters.

Land Mine Brings Opportunity

My life and priorities changed again on March 30th 2010 when I found a land mine the hard way. Two days later I was laid up at Walter Reed Army Medical Center with a shattered heel and a doctor telling me that my career as a paratrooper was over. I was lucky to still have the leg and my wife and I decided to look at it as an opportunity. She asked me, “If you could do anything outside of the army, what would it be?” My only reply was, “Fly helicopters.” For the next two years, finding a way to make that possible became our top priority.

A Flight Program Designed for Veterans

The search was for a flight school was more difficult than I had anticipated. The way the Post 9/11 G.I. Bill seemed to work did not allow me to use my VA benefits to pursue my goals. I went to a number of flight schools who all told me that I had to have my private pilot’s license before my benefits would cover any of the cost. I even applied to and was accepted to a major university’s aviation program only to find that the flight costs would not be covered by the G.I. bill. I was beginning to think my dream of flying was a lost cause. I began looking into scholarships and trying to find a way to cover the flight training expenses. While searching the internet for G.I. Bill housing allowance rates, I came upon a link for Guidance Aviation. Their website claimed that all flight training as well as an associates degree in aviation technology through their collegiate partner program could be covered by the G.I. Bill. It seemed too good to be true, in my experience; you rarely find exactly what you are looking for through an internet search. I immediately called Guidance’s student services and learned that the program was designed for veterans like me who wanted to be professional helicopter pilots. I began to put my application packet together the same day. I had just a few months left in the military and for the first time I was excited about my future after the Army.

Adjusting to Student Life

I was a bit nervous starting classes my first semester, I hadn’t been in school in about fifteen years and didn’t know if I would be able to adjust to the class room. Within the first week I began talking to some of the other guys in the program and found we had a lot in common and even knew a few of the same people from our time in the military. It was easy to make friends within the program and that made it easier to adjust to college life. At the end of the first week, Guidance put on a new student bbq to welcome new students and to recognize milestones passed by students further into the program. That was when I first began to understand a feel apart of the Guidance culture. It didn’t feel like a mix of students, instructors and faculty, but a group of people all working together and celebrating their accomplishments. Like most students, I had just moved to a new town and didn’t know anyone outside of the school but Guidance helped make us feel like we belonged.

Seeking Challenge and Getting It

Since that first barbecue I have had many late nights studying airspace or aerodynamics, many early mornings flying across northern Arizona and many check rides I thought I could never pass. I knew when I left the Army that I wanted something as challenging and fulfilling as my time in the military and Guidance provided that challenge. Like most students I had setbacks, trying to become proficient as a pilot while taking a full load of general education classes required a bit of juggling and even a bit of luck. Every time I passed a milestone, something even more difficult followed but I knew from the first time I was given the controls of a helicopter that this was where I wanted to be.

A New World of Possibilities

Two years ago I was a veteran with a lot of life experience and a G.E.D. Now I am a Certified Flight Instructor-Instruments, with a college degree with a future that is wide open. My experiences at Guidance have opened a new world of possibilities for me and given me a glimpse of the aviation industry I hope to find my place in.

Student Blogs are written by students and alumni of Guidance Aviation, providing insight to the lives and
experiences of those pursuing a career in helicopter aviation.